New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-04-28
TO CRUSH THE SALOONS.
ANOTHER APPEAL FROM THE REV. DIR.
FUNK.
rMpRAcTrcABLE PROPOSITIONS FOR REDUCING THE
.z<..x..=.. II.c

rMpRAcTrcABLE PROPOSITIONS FOR REDUCING THE
NUMBER OF DRINKING PLACES
To the Editor Of The Tribune.
SIR VIII the friends Of High License permit mo
another wordl 1t is surely apparent to you now
that the vedder bill Is impossbility. 1t wouid
scarcely be wilder to expect reversal OF the ma
chinery OF the solar system and the eafth 10 ron
from the east to tho west than to look Tor this Dill
to get the requisite vote in both houses ana Tor the
Governor to sign It, And the defeat will not DO
upon tho merits Of the only point that such men
as Judge Noah Davis and DIR. Crosby have at heare
the reduction of the number of saloons. why not
tho issue TO this one point and compel the
Democratic legislators and the Governor to say
"No" to q naked proposition to reduce the number
of saloons Why give any chance to dodge the lssuei
Why not permit the vast hosts Of Southern Demo-
cratic Prohibitionists to see what manner OF men
their Northern allies ael DO not suffer yourselves
to be defeated minor issues-to be harasseo ana
checkmated by pawns. Permit mo to urge again thae
you draft and push bill that will have only tho
single provision forbidding Excise Commissioners
from granting more than license to 100 voters
In Assembly district or township. Ten minutes
and half dozen lines Will suffice to draft such an
amendment. There be question OF constitu-
tonality partial legislation raised The OPPOSE
ton to it would DO opposition to reduction OF
saloons. No lodging Is possible. II would reduce
tho saloons in New-York to 5000, and in Brooklyn
to 1000 certain as its enforcement
urge High License advocates to adopt this meas
urc not because 1 have faith that it will cure the
saloon evil or in any great degree tend to cure It,
I believe. that those who are working along the line
Of a reduction Of saloons would be greatly disap-
pointed at the result. For the 5000
saloons which would remain would be so
enlarged and such accessories added. they hav-
ing a monopoly Of the business that they would be
nearly II not altogether harmful the 10000 now
are have letters from sixty-fve cergymen In dif-
fercnt counties in Illinois, sixty-one Of the sixty
five say that while there has has been some reduction
OF the number OF saloons under High License, thore
has decrease Of drunkenness or Of the saloon
HS license s s MY then urge High License
vocates TO push the amendment? For this reason .
made an experiment along the line of the reduction
OF saloons And this amendment will lead more re
their object and win not further intrench the saloon
behind the greed Ss Of the bower SF ad Of law IN
favor OF the saloon. 1t would not
these evils but it would not increase them as
Prohibtionists would not be compelled TO light the
measure. All OF our workers in the late Mlcnigan
contest bear testimony TO the fact that High License
caused tho Michigan defeat. Miss Willard, In last
weeks Independent says that this should be the
epitaph OF the Michigan amendment: Died OF High
If revenue is tho object. then the amendment sug-
gested will not do. II that Is tho object, then let
sing with Cowper:
Drink and be mad then, II, your country bids,
iiOT Saa.s demands the a;s.aRse Of your thrOat'
Ye all can swallow. and she asks no more"
II the object Is to protect the Republican saloon
keepers in these cities mostly Germans, or the saloon
Keepers In the rural districts, mostly Republicans,
this amendment viii not do Bu5 y tho object Is 10
open door, and open way clear to the cnd This
year put the limit at one saloon TO one hundred voters
next year at one to five hundred and the next at
Iymnn Abbott;s SUGGESTION IN nm amendment for
bidding tho Excise Commissioner TO grant any licenses
eSoeps 20 , ,, anu ro er for D Tho dnal tns.
no licenses by the Commlssloncrs except for salcs
medicine or for the arts. Tho present law can
TSes are ~" "p,ns which prohhtooists would not fight